Advent is a great opportunity to not only prepare to celebrate Christ’s birth but to also look forward to his return. In 2022 we decided to design an advent activity for households that could help look back to all the people in the Bible who lead to Jesus. Known as the Jesse Tree, we designed a family-friendly devotional resource that looked at characters who formed part of Jesus’ family tree - from Genesis all the way through to the Gospels.
On the Sunday before Advent, we hosted a relaxing Christmas Workshop afternoon, where families came and constructed their very own Jesse Tree Kit together before enjoying a BBQ dinner with live music. This went home along with a short devotional so that families could read a short scripture passage each day and then hang the corresponding decoration up to remind them of the story.
We found this was a natural and easy event for people to invite their neighbours and friends to and as a result we had many from outside the church come and join us for the afternoon. Making your own Jesse Tree set can be a great activity to do as a family or as a parish. Instructions and free downloadable links can be found below.
MAKING YOUR OWN JESSE TREE KIT
What you need:
Downloadable PDF of Printable Stickers (Download Here)
Downloadable PDF of Jesse Tree Devotional booklet (Download Here)
Downloadable PDF of Instruction Booklet (Download Here)
24 round, wooden discs (5cm diameter) with small hole drilled in the top of each. We ordered ours in packs of 50 for approximately $32 from Tiny Memories Laser
2 sheets blank printable round labels (40mm). We used Avery removable matt white round labels (Product 910007) and ordered them from https://megaofficesupplies.com.au for approx $10.50 for a pack of 8 sheets
Calico bag (21cm x 15cm) to store items. We purchased ours from qispackaging.com.au
String. (Butcher’s twine is a perfect size for threading through the small hole)
Instructions:
Place the first sticker from the PICTURE sheet of stickers on one side of a wooden disc.
Then place the matching first sticker from the WORDS sheet of stickers on the reverse side of the disc. Be sure to make sure both sides have the hole facing upwards.
Continue matching the PICTURE and the CORRESPONDING word/day stickers on each of the discs. (Note the downloadable printable stickers read across the page in rows).
Add the string, cutting it to the length you would like to enable you to hang these on a tree or as bunting in your house.
Keep the decorations in the bag provided until needed. Each day, read the scripture for that day and hang the corresponding decoration up to remind you of the story.
